LAS VEGAS  On a very cold, blustery day in the Nevada desert, one that more than symbolized liberal America’s growing chill toward guns, the SHOT Show opened here Monday for media at the Boulder City Pistol & Rifle Range.

I’m not sure what those “Preppers” or “Doomsdayers” are readying for in terms of a gunfire onslaught that will mark the end civilization as we know it, but the sounds of gun report at this media day at the range must be what they envision. The day at the range, split into morning and afternoon sessions, involved hundreds of men and women simultaneously firing every legal gun imaginable at targets from 10 yards to several hundred yards out. There were pistols, shotguns, modern sporting rifles, aka “assault rifles,” even the latest in crossbows. Nearly 1,300 registered for the shoot, but far less braved the cold, windy conditions that even sent hardened vendors for cover and warmth before the afternoon session commenced.

I had never fired an AR-15, a modern sporting rifle, so I visited the Slide Fire Solutions range and tried one. I received some tips and instruction on gun handling from Slide Fire’s Joe Green, and then blasted holes into a Zombie-painted target 20 yards away or so.

There is far more to shooting the AR-15 than any gun I ever fired. It’s not a gun I’ll likely ever own, especially in California, but the thing is, I don’t have a need for one. The shotguns and rifles I own are enough for the hunting I do. If it came time to protect my family, I would hope those guns would be enough. But I do get why someone would own an AR-15. I do get now why they love plinking things with them just for recreation. Of course I’ll never get why a psychopath would be able to get one and kill kids. But if there ever was an emergency or a situation where law enforcement might not get there in time, the AR-15 or its cousin guns would be very effective for someone who needed to protect himself or his family from one or more intruders. I wouldn’t want to take that right away from any other gun owner. As hunters and gun owners, we’re in it together.

And if ever a show brings ALL gun owners together, it’s the SHOT Show. SHOT stands for the Shooting Hunting and Outdoor Trade Show, and after a day at the range for the media, the show officially opened Tuesday at the Sands Expo and Convention Center. The largest trade show of its kind in the world will draw over 60,000 to Las Vegas. It runs, or should we say, shoots, through Friday.

Anyone who has any major role with guns is here for this monstrous 35th Anniversary Show that covers three levels of the Venetian Hotel and adjoining convention center. It draws gun buyers and enthusiasts from all 50 states and from all over the world, 100 different countries in all. There are gear makers and just about any service surrounding target shooting, hunting, outdoor and law enforcement. One booth might be loaded with waterfowl hunters wanting to see the latest in shotguns, while another will draw law enforcement looking for the newest wrinkle on their favorite automatic guns.

The show comes at a time when many in the country are engaged in a heated debate, a thorough self-examination of gun ownership and gun violence by our nation’s elected politicians and appointed gun leaders. Vice president Joe Biden is expected to give President Barrack Obama a report on his suggestions to curb gun violence. All are trying to do something to avoid child massacres at the hands of gun-wielding psychopaths like in Arizona, Colorado and more recently, in Newtown, Conn. In an unfortunate, ironic twist, the National Shooting Sports Foundation is based in Newtown. NSSF owns, sponsors and presents the SHOT Show.

"Ours is a responsible industry that manufactures and sells lawful products to law-abiding citizens, who in turn exercise their Constitutional right to own, use and enjoy firearms safely and responsibly for lawful purposes," NSSF President and CEO Steve Sanetti said in a statement. “A prerequisite to any dialog involving our industry and its products is an honest recognition of the legitimacy of what we do and the important part of the national culture which we represent. Hunting and the recreational shooting sports are here to stay. And so are we.

“Firearms ownership is popular and mainstream," Sanetti added. “Industry is developing new products for women and competition shooters, hunters, people who are interested in concealed carry, and law enforcement, all as a result of consumer demand.”

Despite what some might think, the gun industry and most businesses tied to it are not hurting. The 2012 figures show the $4.1 billion industry had a “strong year,” according to figures released by the NSSF. The NSSF’s figures show there were more background checks for firearms sales last year than any previous year, a record 2 million background checks in November alone. And statistics show that target shooting and hunting numbers are trending up, too.

The industry’s mantra here going into this historic show is clear: More guns do not lead to more crime. Violent crime is down in most cities in America, and the uptick in the purchase of guns for personal and home protection is driving the industry to new heights.

Nathan Pitcher works for Noreen Firearms LLC, a Belgrade, Mont.-based gun manufacturer that sells 50-caliber, single-shot rifles. They’re big guns with huge bullets. Pitcher switched over from the archery industry when it became obvious that the country’s appetite for guns was growing at a rapid rate.

“Before the recent surge (in gun ownership), this company was a two-man operation,” said Pitcher, who is national sales manager at Noreen. “It now has 30 employees and recently moved into a 30,000 square-foot building. We were moving forward before the recent gun incidents. Now it’s tough to keep them in stock. What the (anti-gun groups) don’t realize is how many people they’ll put out of work if things start to change in gun regulations.”

Pitcher looked at my media badge and realized I lived in a state that has some of the toughest gun control laws in the country.

“You have it tough there in California,” Pitcher said. “They outlawed .50-caliber, so we modified our guns and now call them 50 DTC, a legal caliber that’s called a .50, but it’s not. There’s a minute difference. It just looks like a 50-caliber rifle.

Pitcher said that since California limits guns to 10 bullets in a clip, all semi-automatic rifles sent to California only have capability to hold 10 bullets.

“The clip is put in the gun in such a way that it can’t be removed,” Pitcher said.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is pushing for a seven-bullet limit. Bloomberg has taken on the National Rifle Association and the Republican party to the extent that he has successfully helped fund Democrats who beat strong NRA-backed candidates in elections. California Sen. Dianne Feinstein is proposing sweeping changes to gun laws in a state that leads the nation in gun control. She’s targeting semi-automatic modern sporting rifles, or assault rifles, in the liberal lexicon.

Part of the confusion surrounding guns is that cities and states make their own gun laws. They can be tougher than federal laws, but not less stringent, according to Michael Campbell of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

Campbell said automatic machine guns made after May 19, 1986 are illegal for regular citizens (not military or law enforcement) in the country. He said the federal gun laws deal with “automatic machine guns, silencers and destructive devices